Pulp bales are bound by known devices of the kind described above, and examples of such devices are described, for example, in Swedish Patent Nos. 380, 496, 509, 532 and 509, 534. As described in these publications, the free end of the wire is advanced through the means for cutting off and twisting together the wire, and is guided around the bale by guide means. When the wire reaches the means for cutting off and twisting together the wire for the second time, the feed is stopped and the wire end is caught and retained. The guide means releases the wire, and the feed means is reversed to stretch the wire around the bale, whereafter the wire is cut off, and the ends are twisted into a knot. The re-fed wire is then used in the next binding operation. The stretching of the wire yields a relatively great wire length, which must be taken up by the take-up unit. In such devices, problems often arise in that the wire entangles in the take-up unit. This results in operation breakdowns.
On of the objects of the present invention is to provide a take-up unit which has a higher operational safety and capacity and renders possible a high speed feed of the wire.